Agenda - 03-13-2006-1 - Laserfiche WebLink

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What school progranuning aspects tivozzld you be most izzterested izz having funded outside of the per pupil allocatiozz for school current expense? One means that the Commissioners have proposed for creating greater equity between the two school districts is by providing funding from outside the per-pupil appropriation. The Board of Education supports this approach as long as finding that is directed to these endeavors does not supplant or,jeopardize the per-pupil appropriations made to the school districts. At our meeting, the Board of Education considered ten prrogrammatic areas that might be funded outside the per pupil allocation. Our Board decided that the areas that would be best suited for direct funding by the County are those that relate directly to health and safety and in which there is some connection with services that the County cm•rently provides. Therefore, the following areas for joint funding are proposed: 1. After-school programs (including transportation) 2. School Resource Officers and Crossing Guards 3. School Nurses (assume funding for all school nurses, with a minimum of one per school) 4. School Social Workers (assume funding for all school social workers, with a minimum of one per school Do the Orazzge County/Chapel Hill-Carrboro City School Boards of Education fvislz to pzusue discrzssions of taxing ant/zority for the school systems' budget after the current budget cycle? The CHCCS Board of Education has previously taken a position in support of providing local school boards with taxing authority. This is the position that the North Carolina School Boards Association has taken in recent years. The Board confirmed this position at its March 2, 2006 meeting. Many North Carolinians may not realize that fiscally independent school boards are the none across the country. According to the North Carolina School Boards Association, "Over 80 percent of the school boards in the United States have tax levying authority. School boards are the only elected governing bodies in North Carolina that do not have the ability to raise some or all of their ftmds. It would require legislative action, but not a constitutional amendment, to grant school boards taxing authority." The major arguments for Caxing authority relate to accountability and local control. Boards of Education are increasingly held accountable for' meeting student achievement goals; however, they don't have the power to raise the revenues that they need to do the job. School boards also find themselves in the position of wanting to implement new programs or eiilrance resources, but they don't laiow whet7rer or not they will have sufficient funding until the County Commissioners approve an appropr°iation in .June. A good example of that this year is our commitment to implement a 7-period day next year, but we won't laiow until .Tune if we will have sufficient local funds By that Cime, the district will have already committed to a schedule for next year, Not having control over one's funds makes it extremely difficult to plan. For these reasons, the Board of Education is interested in explot•ing with the Comrty Commissioners the possibility of providing taxing authm•ity to om• Board of Education.